Joe Root addresses England's 'Bazball' approach after reappointment as captain
What's the story
Joe Root, the newly reappointed England Test captain, has said he won't completely discard the 'Bazball' style of play. The 35-year-old Yorkshireman took over after Ben Stokes's retirement and Stephen Fleming's appointment as head coach. Under McCullum and Stokes, England had adopted a more aggressive playing style. However, Root wants to build on this without going back to pre-Bazball days. Here's more.
Evolution
Root wants to evolve England's approach
Root, speaking to the ECB, emphasized his commitment to evolve and tweak the team's performance.
He said, "Since 2022 we've done some amazing things."
"We'll try to continue a lot of the good stuff we did over that period and not finding ourselves back to where we were before Baz [Brendon McCullum] and Ben [Stokes] took over, and evolving and tweaking things to where we want to be and really competing against the top nations consistently."
Personal growth
Root acknowledges his growth since last captaincy stint
Root acknowledged that he has changed a lot since his last captaincy stint.
He said, "[I'm] hugely different, anyone that says in an eight-year period they were the same person they were [at the start] is probably lying."
The new England Test captain also stressed that all experiences during this time have shaped him into a slightly different person who wants to take the team forward.
Coaching partnership
Test captain Root excited to work with Fleming
Root expressed his excitement about working with Fleming, the former New Zealand captain who recently left his role as head coach of IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings.
He said, "We've spoken briefly and if I'm being brutally honest he was a big reason why I wanted to do it."
The England Test captain added he's looking forward to building something special together with Fleming.
Numbers
Root has led England in 65 Tests
During his first stint as captain, Root led England in 64 Tests (now 65), winning 27 and losing 26 (now 27).
Root has also seen 11 draws as skipper. His win percentage is 41.53.
Root is also England's most successful Test captain, having surpassed Michael Vaughan's record of winning 26 games.
Under the former, England also lost The Oval Test against New Zealand last month.
Information
Root averages 46.7 as skipper in Tests
According to Cricinfo, Root has the most runs as England's Test captain. From 65 games (120 innings), he has scored 5,418 runs at an average of 46.7. His tally includes 14 tons, 27 half-centuries, and the best score of 228.
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His overall numbers in Tests
Overall in Tests, Root has amassed 14,114 runs from 166 matches (304 innings) at 50.58. In addition to 41 hundreds, he has slammed 67 fifties. His best score is 262.